Season 3: Chapter 166: Fourth Era Battle (2)
Pyeonjeon, also known as a barbed arrow, referred to an arrow one-third the size of a regular arrow. When this arrow was placed in a secondary device called a tonga and shot with a bow, its destructive power increased over long distances. It could easily penetrate armor and even modern bulletproof helmets when shot with a contemporary bow, proving its promised power.
“Pyeonjeon. Ah, this is also a pride of archery civilizations and Joseon’s pride! There are many civilizations good at using bows, but only Joseon uses Pyeonjeon!”
Civil Empire gave this Pyeonjeon weapon only to Joseon because Korea still had masters capable of making the Gakgung (Korean traditional bow). They continued to restore and research Pyeonjeon technology. However, despite this special treatment, Joseon rarely used Pyeonjeon well in the game.
“Ah, yes. Pyeonjeon is good, but...”
OrangeKing looked a bit worried and tilted his head.
“I thought they’d just push efficiently with Gakgung archers. I didn’t think they’d opt for mounted archers, let alone invest into Pyeonjeon.”
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“Ah, is that so? Why? Is it expensive?!”
“No... the cost is actually cheaper than upgrading horse archers. It doesn’t require the cost of raising horses... It’s similar to why very few countries used Pyeonjeon in the past.”
The performance of Pyeonjeon was undeniable, but most countries didn’t use it in the past. Only a few civilizations with highly developed archery skills employed Pyeonjeon because it was difficult to use and required advanced skills.
“It’s very tricky to shoot, isn’t it? It’s not easy in reality and even in the game.”
Placing the small arrow in a tonga and shooting it with a bow produced destructive power, but it wasn’t easy to be accurate.
“Ah, that’s right. It doesn’t look easy at all even at a glance!”
“To exaggerate a bit, training a soldier to use Pyeonjeon in the past was like training a fighter pilot in modern warfare. Not just anyone could do it! That’s how difficult it was!”
— Really??
— Pretty much spot on LOL
— Archery itself is something only the chosen ones do, and now Gakgung with Pyeonjeon LOL
— Stealth fighter LOL
“Among the Joseon soldiers, those who can freely use Pyeonjeon... I dare say there aren’t many!”
“Did they practice it?”
“They might have! But looking at the current game flow, it doesn’t seem like anyone practiced it!”
Both sides barely made it into the third era after a messy skirmish. Neither side could claim this was a pre-planned strategy.
— LOL true chaos
— So using Pyeonjeon is just on a whim?
— They must have at least practiced with Pyeonjeon
“Also, using Pyeonjeon means absolutely no horse archers. It’s almost impossible to shoot Pyeonjeon while riding.”
— What if it’s Almond?
— Sad to give up horse archers
— This sounds difficult, why not just ride horses?
“Ah, then certainly the Pyeonjeon decision is a bit odd? It costs a lot to upgrade and it’s hard to use! What’s good about it?”
“First, the performance when it hits! And obviously, this terrain is a plain, isn’t it?”
“Right.”
“Plains are good terrain for horses, but there’s no better terrain for snipers either!”
“Ah!”
The rich granary plains featured wide open fields and horizons dotted with occasional forests for cover. This environment suited cavalry for ambushes, but was also perfect for snipers to take position and keep shooting. The only concern was the enemy cavalry rushing at the snipers from behind.
“Anyway, the enemy can’t use cavalry because they’re Vikings, right? So Joseon chose snipers without the need for cavalry. This is the best choice.”
— Oh
— As expected of Master Cookie
— Right
— Cool
[Pyeonjeon - 27%]
While the Pyeonjeon’s construction reached up to a quarter, the archers received the finished Gakgung.
“Starting with Pang, they’re receiving Gakgung one by one.”
“This time, it doesn’t seem like they have an offensive strategy led by Almond.”
“Yes. It seems like they’ll play defensively and rely on a stable leader like Pang until the Pyeonjeon is complete. Pyeonjeon is said to be a third era weapon, but it takes so long to upgrade that it’s almost a fourth era weapon.”
— Yes, the production is really slow
— The arrows are fast, but the upgrade is so slow
— 4th era weapon LOL
— The Vikings are going to rush to the 4th era
Another downside of the Pyeonjeon was time. Even if one started upgrading right at the beginning of the third era, it could only be completed after producing fifty to sixty third era weapons. Sometimes, almost enough time would have passed to reach the fourth era.
“Ah. Cookie should be aware of this. The Vikings are rushing to the fourth era without doing anything in the third era!”
Meanwhile, the Vikings quickly proceeded with their upgrades.
“Ah, the Vikings don’t have good third era upgrades, so they’re moving quickly into the fourth era! Obviously, they require fewer resources and buildings.”
The Vikings’ third era was originally designed to be short. By not spending on additional equipment and moving directly into the fourth era, they could progress at twice the speed of other civilizations. The Vikings proceeded accordingly.
“Yes. This is when Joseon should show aggressive movement... Oh?”
OrangeKing felt surprised to see a building in the Joseon base.
“No, this...”
— ??
— Wow
— That’s why they went with Pyeonjeon LOL
— How far do you see, Master Cookie?
— Is this for real? LOL
“Honestly, I’m hesitating to say this, but maybe Cookie plans to tire out the Vikings before the third game?”
— LOL
— Just being annoying LOL
— That’s too much LOL
— LOL
OrangeKing’s suspicion arose from a certain building.
“I joked that Pyeonjeon was a fourth era weapon, but now it really seems so! This is the first time we’ll see a fourth era battle in the main tournament!”
Joseon prepared to move into the fourth era like the Vikings. One building option gave this away.
[Spy Faction]
Joseon had chosen to build the Spy Faction building.
“This building...! It’s where the special scout unit, Joseon Spy, is produced!”
— Cool
— Pyeonjeon with Joseon Spy changes the game
— Amazing LOL
— Ghost + Nuke appeared LOL
“What does this mean?”
“The Vikings were moving too fast into the third era, so Joseon realized that they were aiming for the fourth era! Usually, Joseon would push hard into the third era to finish the game! But strangely, Cookie decided to also proceed into the fourth era! Let’s fight properly!”
— Is this right?
— Did they think that they wouldn’t be able to end it with 3rd era Gakgung?
— Thanks to this, we’ll see a 4th era clash
— Sad that Vikings can’t be killed in the 3rd era
— Will they handle Valhalla well?
— Pure romance
The game time continued to flow. Gradually, both sides had no space left on the minimap. Red and blue dots divided the map in a standoff. Their respective armed forces increased and resources on the ground dwindled. They constantly harassed each other with large and small skirmishes.
“Now, the Vikings are using guerrilla tactics to kill workers and are plundering a lot of gold! Ah! But the fully loaded hunting outposts are burning again! Siege weapons are attacking from far away! The Vikings have no way to block this!”
The occasional worker harassment and hunting outpost harassment continued.
“The Vikings are destroying siege weapons and weapon factories! The Gakgung soldiers are back!”
These skirmishes weren’t enough to change the big picture. However, the flow would soon change.
[Pyeonjeon - Complete]
The Pyeonjeon had been completed and Joseon immediately entered the fourth era.
“Joseon’s Pyeonjeon is complete! And they’re entering the fourth era...”
Boom!
[Vikings - 4th Era]
At this moment, the Vikings entered the fourth era first.
“The Vikings are in the fourth era! The match we thought would end in the first era has reached the fourth era!”
“The players must be physically exhausted! Please hang in there a bit more!”
Almost the entire map had been revealed. The main base’s gold mines and wood resources had all been exhausted. The food supply had long since switched from hunting to farming.
“Now, the remaining resource area is in the middle! This central region must be secured! Otherwise, they’ll starve to death!!!”
Both sides had no more room to retreat. They had to seize the center of the map for the remaining resources.
The Vikings had stocked up on food to prepare for the upcoming major battle.
Joseon began moving their Gakgung soldiers with Pyeonjeon in large numbers. And—
[Valhalla - Complete]
The Vikings also unlocked their fourth era trait, Valhalla. This allowed Viking warriors to revive once on the battlefield and made them the ultimate warriors.
In response—
Boom!
[Joseon - 4th Era]
Joseon also entered the fourth era.
“Now! Both sides are moving!”
The Vikings began to move in force as red dots on the minimap. Joseon did the same and deployed different formations based on the situation. The Vikings responded by adjusting their formations and Joseon corrected their formations again.
“The invisible nerve war between both teams is suffocating!”
“Wow! The minimap conveys everything! There’s so much tension!!”
“That’s how crucial this battle is!”
The dots on both sides stopped adjusting their formations. And—
“Now! Are they going to clash?!”
Boom!
The Vikings stomped their feet first and started running.
“Now the Gakgung soldiers are positioned behind the forests and walls!”
“The Vikings are charging!!!”
“Both teams are beginning a life-or-death battle!! This is total war!”
Every existing soldier would participate in this battle, except for two Joseon players. One was Almond and the other was the assistant commander, Coffee.
[Spy Faction]
Almond entered the Spy Faction in the main base and received his new unit designation.
“Ah! Almond has entered the Spy Faction! Is he going to be a special scout unit, the Joseon spy?! Rather than fighting, is he planning to show us something new?!”
“Ah! This is something to look forward to! The fourth era special units are costly, but truly exceptional! They’re not just ordinary soldiers!”
The fourth era could be called the flower of civilization wars. The abilities of special units in this era couldn’t be compared to those of previous eras.
[Gakgung Soldier → Joseon Spy]
Almond’s unit designation changed. Reading the description in Almond’s vision made it clear why the commentators felt so excited.
[Movement speed has increased by 20%. The player may use all mounts. When using weapons from other civilizations, their faction abilities are applied.
The player may use three new skills:
Disguise: Appear as a member of the opposing civilization. Deactivates upon attacking. Cooldown: 50 seconds. The cooldown will reset upon killing an enemy.
Espionage: Infiltrate the enemy’s research lab and steal research results. Must return to the main base to complete.
Snipe: Increases weapon range by 80%. Damage increases by up to 250% based on range. Cooldown: 15 seconds.]